Glossy outlet for creativity

Gabrielle Scout and Emily Thompson were kidding around over coffee.

Flipping through the arts-centric Dossier Journal, the Costa Mesa residents dreamed out loud about spearheading a publication of their own. A picture of Thompson’s forehead could be cover art, they chortled.

It was a joke — until it wasn’t.

“I suddenly found myself working 12-hour days,” said Scout, 22. “So I texted Emily saying, ‘Hey, I guess we are really starting a magazine.”

What took shape from a 20-minute planning session is now a glossy 64-page creation titled Entityy Magazine, which is chock full of art, poetry, short stories and fashion.

“An entity is an object that exists by itself,” said Thompson, 20, the creative editor. “We loved it and so we put two y’s on the end to make it different.”

They started by reaching out to artistically inclined people across the country via a Craigslist advertisement. The response was immediate and overwhelming as more than 120 submissions poured in, spanning everything from artwork to a screenplay excerpt.

Scout and Thompson winnowed down the submissions to the best 12 and gave them a home in the first edition of Entityy Magazine, which is slated to debut at the end of January.

Bay Area resident Roberta Dee Hall, a 23-year-old graphic designer, was among those who replied. Enthusiastic about Scout and Thompson’s endeavor, she offered her services — creating the layout and giving the publication a “cool” visual presentation — for free.

“I, as a young artist myself, wanted to give my time because I know what being published the first time feels like,” Hall said. “Entityy Magazine is trying to give ... a voice to young professionals that wouldn’t normally have one.”

Thompson, a jazz singer, piano and trumpet player, writer and avowed clothes lover, has assumed responsibility for all photo shoots and fashion spreads. As editor in chief, Scout has interviewed locals she believes demonstrate an artistic view on life. They have included Heather Maio, a Holocaust exhibit curator, Danny Kurtzman, co-owner of Ezekiel Clothing, and Jake Halstead, a professional surfer.

As magazine editors, Thompson and Scout have an artistic view of their own. While Scout said she plans to expand Entityy online, she sings the praises of an old-fashioned print publication.

“We firmly believe in the experience of holding a publication in our hands,” she said. “There is nothing like the feel of a book, magazine or newspaper. We are a bit obsessed with binding, pages, covers and the way that feels in an individual’s hands.”

When it’s hot off the presses, the pair plan to place Entityy Magazine in coffee shops, art museums and other easily accessible locations for readers to enjoy. They will also distribute 1,000 copies to nearby businesses, hoping to round up investors for the next installment of what they hope will become a 120-plus-page quarterly journal.

An outpouring of support was also reflected when the duo took to Kickstarter to fund their inaugural issue, whether people donated $10 or $2,000. Although ecstatic when they achieved their goal of raising $10,000 in two weeks, Scout and Thompson were not surprised.

“In today’s society, I suppose you go to college, intern somewhere, graduate, get an entry-level job and then work your way up,” Scout said. “And here, we thought, ‘Why wait until we’re 35 to do all this?’ People are either admiring or surprised by our level of ambition.”

—Features Editor Michael Miller also contributed to this story.